Monday, 30 November 2015

The Greater Mandala of the Spiritual Community

This talk was given on 28th November 2015 (Sangha Day) at Cambridge Buddhist Centre

As many of you will know the CBC has been taking part in
the international urban retreat for the past week. The theme of the
international urban retreat has been the greater Mandala of aesthetic
appreciation. This is a teaching from Bhante which can be found in his book
Wisdom beyond Words.

The phrase “aesthetic appreciation” was how the German
scholar Herbert Guenther translated the Sanskrit term Vidya. Vidya is the
opposite of Avidya – avidya is the term for ignorance – spiritual ignorance, so
Vidya is the opposite of spiritual ignorance which you would expect to be
knowledge or wisdom and indeed Vidya is often translated as wisdom. However,
Bhante thinks this translation by Mr Guenther – ‘aesthetic appreciation’ is
much closer to the real meaning of the term. So this should give us something
to think about – the opposite of ignorance is aesthetic appreciation –
appreciation of beauty is being equated with wisdom.

The contrast that Bhante is making is the contrast
between seeing things, people, seeing the world in terms of usefulness and
seeing it in terms of beauty. What is being said is that an enlightened person
would see the world, things, people, everything as beautiful, as aesthetically
valuable rather than as useful, or in terms of their usefulness. The
implication is that we who are not enlightened tend to regard the world in a
utilitarian way, in terms of usefulness. And another implication is that in
order to awake to Buddhahood, to attain enlightenment we need to move in the
direction of aesthetic appreciation. We need to move from an attitude of ‘what’s
in it for me’? to one of simple appreciation.

Enlightened consciousness has gone beyond all sense of a
permanent, fixed and separate self – it has transcended all sense of self and
other and therefore there is no craving to protect, defend, secure or build up
a self, an identity, a me – so there is no tendency to regard things or people
or the environment or anything in terms of how it can be used to enhance self.

This is not to say that an enlightened person doesn’t use
things – of course, some basic needs are still to be fulfilled – food,
clothing, shelter, medicine – but all is within a much larger perspective, the
perspective of aesthetic appreciation.

Our state of mind influences how we experience the world.
We could even say that when we think we are experiencing the world we are
really experiencing our own mind.When we are in a state of depression
everything around us takes on a particular flavour and is unsatisfactory. When
we are in a state of anger everything around us takes on a different aspect.
When we are in state of restless craving everything takes on yet another
feeling. And if we are in love, or have just been on retreat or have passed an
exam – everything takes on a more rosy hue.

Our state of mind affects how we see the world, how we
experience to world. An Enlightened mind experiences the world as beautiful –a pure land. In the Vimalakirti Nirdesa, a text
of Mahayana Buddhism, Sariputra asks the question – “If the buddha-field is pure only to the
extent that the mind of the bodhisattva is pure, then, when Shakyamuni was
engaged in the career of the bodhisattva, his mind must have been impure.
Otherwise how could this buddha-field appear to be so impure? “ The Buddha
replies “ Sariputra, the fact that some living beings do not behold the
splendid display of virtues of the buddha-field of the Tathagata is due to
their own ignorance. It is not the fault of the Tathagata. Shariputra, the buddha-field of the Tathagata
is pure, but you do not see it.” (Thurman, The Holy Teaching of Vimlakirti,
p.18) The
text goes on to talk about the work of a Buddha or a bodhisattva as being to
build a Buddhaland. A Buddhaland it says is built of living beings all
co-operating together. In other words a Buddhaland is a spiritual community and
the work of every Buddha and bodhisattva is to build a spiritual community. The
spiritual community is a Buddhaland, which is a pure land, which is Mandala of
aesthetic appreciation. Enlightened consciousness manifests in this Mandala of
aesthetic appreciation, the Buddhaland, the pure land, the spiritual community.

A Mandala is a symbol of wholeness, completeness. The
spiritual community is a Mandala of beauty, at its best. A mandala with
commitment to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha at it’s centre. It radiates the
beauty of love, Metta, friendship, of generosity, of wisdom, of aesthetic appreciation.
A simple definition of a spiritual community
might be that a spiritual community is a harmonious community of mutual
helpfulness with a common objective. I want to talk now about spiritual
community in terms of harmony, mutual helpfulness and common objective.

I will start at the end of this definition of spiritual
community and work back to the beginning – so I’ll talk first about the common
objective of spiritual community, then about mutual helpfulness and then about
harmony and finish by coming back to the mandala.

The common objective of the spiritual community is to
create a spiritual community – to create, develop and maintain vigourous,
vibrant, effective spiritual community. The purpose of Sangha is Sangha. This
is not to say that spiritual community is an end in itself, but that it is a
necessary condition for the spiritual development of individuals on the Path.

Everything arises in dependence upon conditions and one
of the most crucial and indispensable conditions for the arising of awakened
consciousness is spiritual community. An Awakened or Enlightened mind, a
Buddha, transcends all sense of self and other and the context in which we
practice towards this transcendence is Sangha. As
Bhante and Subhuti put it in their paper on a Supra-personal force : “When
people come together who deeply share a common vision and purpose, their
efforts combine in a momentum that draws them all onward, beyond themselves.
This is Sangha. If they are able to join in real harmony, with openness and
mutual trust, then the weaknesses of each are obviated and their strengths
contribute selflessly to their shared Dharma service. Between them they set up
a powerful current, by which they are all simultaneously carried along.”
(Sangharakshita and Subhuti, Seven Papers, p. 185)

We may start our spiritual life by thinking in terms of
improving ourselves – becoming happier, more relaxed, more confident and to
that end we practice meditation, we try to keep the precepts, we study the
Dharma and we engage in Puja. And it works – we do become happier and so on. But very quickly we
also see the importance of other people – the support of meditating with others
is quite obvious from the beginning, then studying the Dharma with others means
we can benefit from hearing different viewpoints and from the greater
experience of our teachers. We begin to develop friendships and enjoy the
support and encouragement of a positive and friendly group of people.

As we progress on the path we gradually realise that
there is much more to the spiritual path then becoming happier, more relaxed
and confident. We realise that it is not in fact all about me and my practice,
my meditation, my spiritual life, my friends – no, we realise that the whole
point of spiritual life is much more expansive, more altruistic. When we see
this, we also begin to see the real significance of the spiritual community.
The spiritual community provides the framework, the context, the institutions
and the opportunities for us to give full expression to the altruistic
dimension of spiritual practice. It is where our generosity and kindness and
all our other regarding impulses can be given full expression.

By engaging and participating in the spiritual community
– by befriending others, by helping out, by giving time, giving energy, giving
money, giving ourselves – we help ourselves to grow and develop, we become
bigger people, more expansive and alive and begin to experience, to taste, the
bodhisattva life – the life of compassionate activity based in awareness. This
practice of spiritual community is a practice of kusala karma, skilful action,
at ever higher levels – increasing our capacity to give and then giving more
and more. And this is how we come to realise the joy of egolessness, the
happiness of serving the Dharma wholeheartedly, the fulfilment of allowing
ourselves to be used for the sake of living beings. Spiritual Community can
give rise to what Bhante has called the ‘third order of consciousness’. Page
121 A New Voice in the Buddhist Tradition.

When this ‘coincidence of wills’ happens, when something
akin to a ‘third order of consciousness’ arises it manifests as an atmosphere
of co-operation and friendliness, a spirit of generosity and goodwill, even
something quite mysterious and indefinable that we can experience, but can’t
quite pin down. Bhante mentioned this at the end of an interview he gave six
years ago about the nature of the Order. He said : P 36, Seven Papers …

And all this is made possible by the existence of a
spiritual community that we can immerse ourselves in. A spiritual community is
a harmonious community of mutual helpfulness with a common objective. When I
say the common objective of all of us in the spiritual community is to create
spiritual community, I don’t mean that we are somehow turned in on ourselves
and obsessed with our little group. Creating spiritual community is an expansive,
outgoing activity. We create spiritual community by being welcoming, friendly
and helpful to all who wish to be part of it. This is mutual helpfulness. Those
who can teach the Dharma, teach. Those
whose talents lie in other directions will do other things or support those who
teach. Teaching the Dharma is in any case, not just a matter of talking about
the Dharma, it’s not just a matter of giving talks and leading groups and
classes. It is primarily about exemplification and about sharing our
experience. I think Vimalabandhu is a very good example of an Order Member who
teaches the Dharma by exemplification. He is consistently generous and good
humoured and really gives of himself wholeheartedly – cooking and in many other
ways, as well as befriending all and sundry. So yes, teaching the Dharma is
also about listening to and befriending those who need guidance on the path.
Those who are not yet ready to give talks and lead groups can do all of this.
We can all co-operate together to create and develop the Sangha, sharing our
experience, being friendly and giving generously. We can all be examples of a
life well lived.

Mutual helpfulness is a practical thing, an activity. For
instance, this building is a focal point for our local Sangha – it has many
needs. If it could speak it would say – I need your love and attention, I need
to be cleaned and made beautiful; I am old and sometimes I don’t function so
well – help me. If this building could speak it would also give 1000 thanks to
all the volunteers and the centre team who do strive to keep it clean and
beautify it.

The centre team, the class leaders and retreat leaders
and our volunteer receptionists and school visit leaders and other volunteers
are all working at the coal face of providing the conditions for the spiritual
community to flourish. They all need support, they need encouragement, they
need to be rejoiced in, they need to be thanked and praised. People like Nene,
Kenny, Steve (reception), Jan and Anne, Mij and Richard, Ann Blyth, Eileen,
Tim, Nick, Ian, Alison, Mary and many more. But I think Taradasa should get a
special mention and be given a medal of honour for the huge amount he puts into
keeping everything running smoothly – too often he is on the receiving end of
grumbles and complaints. Before Aryajaya and Amalasiddhi came to work at the Centre
Taradasa was stretched to his limits and beyond and he could have collapsed I
think if we hadn’t been able to get some help. Do feel free to praise him and
express gratitude to him. Tejasiddhi and Abhayamati are also key to keeping the
engines running, so to speak. It is easy to fall into an attitude of thinking
of the Buddhist Centre as a service provider – like the library, post office,
town hall or Citizens Advice Bureau. But the Centre is not really about
providing a service – it is about facilitating the development of Spiritual
Community.

You can support those working at the coal face of
creating the conditions for spiritual community by giving money, time and
energy. Money helps support the people who keep the show on the road and it
helps to keep this creaking old building in good repair. Giving time to
volunteer helps the centre team enormously – manning reception, cleaning,
replacing flowers, working on the allotment, painting and decorating, looking
after shrines and shrine cloths, cleaning candleholders, school visits,
supporting classes. There are a whole host of ways in which people do give time
and if more people come forward we can do more – clean the places we never get
to, get all our shrine gear spick and
span and so on. But also if volunteers work together they can have a tangible
experience of spiritual community. From January Tejasiddhi will be starting a
Friday morning Sangha event to keep the Centre clean, which will also involve meditation and the
possibility of staying on for a study session at lunch time.

By giving energy to the situation we create an atmosphere
of aliveness that everyone can enjoy. The primary way to give energy is simply
to turn up to events. Last year in a talk I said Sangha needed participation,
participation, participation and that is still the case. If I am giving a talk
and only 5 people turn up that is demoralising
for me and for everyone else and it’s harder to generate energy. If 50 people
turn up there is a buzz and I’ll probably give a better talk and everyone will
enjoy the positive atmosphere even if the talk is average. You can also give
energy by getting involved with special events like Buddhist action month, open
days, the winter fair, the opera, Festival days and so on. Or get involved with
the choir. And of course we give energy to the situation simply by doing things
together – whether it’s meditating together, going on retreat together,
studying together, working together on a project or just hanging out together –
going to the cinema or an art gallery or going for a walk – all of this gives
energy to the spiritual community – all helps to create Sangha. It is all
helping to build the Buddhaland. And of course in relation to those who are new
we can give hospitality – welcoming them and making them feel comfortable –
even if you’ve only been here twice yourself, you can still welcome someone who
is completely new. I have been to quite a number of Triratna centres and have
experienced a lot of friendliness and hospitality. I don’t think Cambridge is
at the top of the league when it comes to hospitality – I think we could do
more. It can be quite daunting for some people to come into the foyer and
encounter lots of people who already know each other chatting away. So it’s
good for all of us to be aware of new people coming into the centre and make an
effort to make them feel welcome and comfortable.So I have been speaking about
giving money, giving time and giving energy under the heading of mutual
helpfulness. All giving is good. Generosity is the basic Buddhist virtue –
generosity of any kind foreshadows the great compassion of a Buddha. In
generosity are the seeds of the bodhisattva ideal – the aspiration to attain
awakening for the sake of all beings.

Generosity is not listed as a mental event or mental
state in the 51 mental events of the Abhidharma. Generosity is an activity and
the mental state is one of non-attachment. Non-attachment to our money allows
us to give money. Non-attachment to our possessions allows us to give things.
Non-attachment to our time (my weekend, my evening, my space) allows us to give
time. Non-attachment to our energy allows us to give energy. Non-attachment to
our ego identity eventually allows us to give ourselves fully without even
thinking or noticing that we are giving. Attachment to an ego identity, to a
sense of separate and permanent selfhood, is the key delusion which the Dharma
is designed to undermine. We can help the process by working on becoming less
attached to those things which are extensions of our ego identity; money,
possessions, time and personal space. Or putting it more positively we can help
the process of dismantling the delusion of a fixed and separate self by
training ourselves in egolessness through the practice of generosity.

The spiritual community is a harmonious community of
mutual helpfulness united by a common objective. So I’ve talked about the
common objective of the spiritual community being the creation, development and
maintenance of the spiritual community, building a Buddhaland, a pure land, a
Mandala of aesthetic appreciation. I have spoken about mutual helpfulness in
terms of giving money, time and energy. So that leaves harmony – the spiritual
community is a harmonious community. What is harmony? According to the
dictionary to be harmonious means to form a pleasing are consistent whole. This
is more or less the definition of a Mandala. Bhante has said that “To make a
Mandala is to take any prominent aspect of reality and surround it with beauty
– so as to make a harmonious and pleasing configuration.” A spiritual community
if it is in harmony is a pleasing and consistent whole – it is a Mandala with
the three jewels at its centre and those who practice the Dharma or aspire to
be awakened are the beauty arranged around it.

But how do we achieve harmony? How do we take our
discordant notes and gradually harmonise them into a beautiful Mandala?

Perhaps we can learn from the choir – how does a group of
people with different voices, different ranges, different capacities, different
temperaments, different tastes – how does this group gradually become a harmonious
singing unit – a choir- able to produce beautiful sounds.

Well the first thing is that they have to want to be a
choir – they have to want to come into musical harmony. Then they need a
choirmaster, a teacher, a guide. Then they need to be willing to listen to the
guide and practice as he or she asks. Then there may be some instances where
particular people need individual mentoring to give them confidence. Assuming
that we all want to be in harmony as a spiritual community then we need to be
willing to listen to our guide – Sangharakshita – and put into practice what he
teaches us –Generosity, ethics( especially the 4 speech precepts, which anyone
can practice – truthful, kindly, helpful and harmonising speech), meditation,
study, going on retreat and friendship. If we do that we will largely be in
harmony – doing the same practices, having the same language to talk about practice
and progressing on the path together.

Personalities are very different from each other – like
voices – but unlike voices they can’t be moulded so easily and sometimes
personalities clash, they are discordant and that can be painful and even unpleasant.
In that case for harmony to be restored, both parties will need to recognise,
become aware, that this is a clash of personalities and not necessarily about
right and wrong. If there is that recognition then some sort of truce or modus
operandi can usually be agreed. If the discordance is not about personalities
but about ideas – then that may be much more serious. If the ideas are of great
importance to spiritual life and practice then at some point the teacher may
have to adjudicate. If the ideas are not so significant for spiritual life then
one or the other of the parties just has to back down or both have to see that
the argument has little significance.

When we have a harmonious spiritual community that is
vibrantly alive and effective, then to use Bhante’s words “we can think of ourselves as living
within a greater Mandala of aesthetic appreciation, in which all our practical
mundane affairs, and the fulfilment of all our non-neurotic needs and wants,
occupy just a tiny corner. The real values are aesthetic, not utilitarian.” Or
to put it another way, in the spiritual community we are in the world of our
highest values and to the extent that we really fully engage in spiritual
community then the worry and stress of mundane affairs loses its potency and
has less and less of a hold on our imagination. We have the bigger and wiser
perspective of the greater Mandala of aesthetic appreciation.

About Me

I am a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order (formerly the Western Buddhist Order). I was born in Ireland in 1955 and have lived in the UK most of my adult life. I have been a Buddhist since 1983, when I had a life changing encounter with a Sri Lankan monk in West Berlin, where I was then living.I joined the Triratna Buddhist Order in 1988.